Speaking with The Hollywood Reporter<\/a> for an interview published on Thursday, Sept. 11, the 73-year-old actor admitted he was hesitant to accept a role in 2017’s Star Wars: The Last Jedi<\/a>.<\/p>\n “I had real reservations about coming back. I thought it would be a mistake,” he shared, opening up about why he initially considered declining a role in the movie. “You can\u2019t catch lightning in a bottle twice \u2014 they should really focus on a new generation of characters.”<\/p>\n “And I thought, ‘Well, Harrison [Ford]<\/a> is not going to do it anyway,'” he continued. “You could see his irritation with constantly having to talk about Han Solo.”<\/p>\n However, much to his surprise, Ford agreed to reprise his role in the iconic franchise.<\/p>\n Eric Charbonneau\/Neon via Getty<\/p>\n Mark Hamill at “The Life Of Chuck” special screening in June.<\/p>\n “Once I saw in the press that he had accepted, I felt like I had been drafted \u2014 because if I\u2019m the only one [of the original trio, along with the late Carrie Fisher<\/a>] who says no, I\u2019ll be the most hated man in nerd-dom.”<\/p>\n Now, he credits the movie for opening doors to more feature film roles and allowing him to make his way back into the spotlight.<\/p>\n Elsewhere in the conversation, Hamill spoke about the resurgence in his acting career after decades of voice and TV work.<\/p>\n “I certainly didn\u2019t expect to have this sudden burst of life so late in the game,” Hamill told the outlet. “I should be spending time wandering the beaches with a metal detector. I can’t explain why, all of a sudden, I have five features this year.”<\/p>\n According to Hamill, he reached a point about five years ago when he thought, “It’s not easy getting older, and it\u2019s even harder when you\u2019re doing it on camera.”<\/p>\n “So I thought that I\u2019ve had enough on-camera. I\u2019m going to continue working but in voiceover only. Then Mike Flanagan and his producer, Trevor Macy, contacted me to do\u00a0The Fall of the House of Usher,” he recalled, referring to the 2023 horror mini series.<\/p>\n “I was playing the family lawyer to a really evil family \u2014 a soulless, truly evil guy. And I loved it. It was minimalist,” he shared. “It was unlike anything I had ever done, and it sort of rekindled my satisfaction of doing things on camera. Then, with\u00a0The Life of Chuck<\/a>, I\u2019ve seen it now three times. My wife has seen it like six times. She says, ‘It’s my favorite thing you\u2019ve ever done.’ “<\/p>\n Screen Archives\/Getty<\/p>\n Mark Hamill for ‘Star Wars: A New Hope.’<\/p>\n Never miss a story \u2014 sign up for\u00a0PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter<\/a>\u00a0to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer\u200b\u200b, from celebrity news to compelling human-interest stories.<\/p>\n Though Hamill has been candid about his love for Star Wars, the\u00a0actor recently confessed that he hasn’t seen\u00a0Star Wars: Episode IV \u2013 A New Hope<\/a>, his first film in the epic franchise, since its 1977 premiere.<\/p>\n “I haven’t\u00a0seen it since it came out,” Hamill said during a June appearance on\u00a0Today<\/a>. “My sons watch it \u2014 especially\u00a0Nathan<\/a>\u00a0is a huge aficionado. I saw it when it came out and I just don’t revisit it.”<\/p>\n “I’m not one of those people that goes, ‘Hey, let’s watch one of my movies!'” joked the actor, who famously\u00a0played Jedi protagonist Luke Skywalker<\/a>\u00a0in the original trilogy and later returned for the sequel films and multiple TV series.<\/p>\n While Hamill is grateful to have played the iconic character, he previously admitted that he was ready to hang up his lightsaber for good.<\/p>\n “I just don’t see any reason to,” he said on <\/a>CBS Sunday Morning<\/a> when asked about another Skywalker reprisal. “Let me put it that way: I mean, they have so many stories to tell, they don’t\u00a0need\u00a0Luke anymore. I had my time, and that’s good. But that’s enough.”<\/p>\n![\"Eric](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/c860045960915ba8ccbb1bdd8ac8bc11.jpeg\"\/)
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